Slidable side jaw wrench with adjustment lock



July 24, 1956 F. c. HUND ,75

SLIDABLE SIDE JAW WRENCH WITH ADJUSTMENT LOCK Filed March 23, 1955 INVENTOR E 6. Hand ATTORNEY SLIDABLE SDE JAW WRENCH WITH ADJUSTIVIENT LOCK Frank C. Hund, Nashville, Tenn, assignor of thirty-five per cent to Warren H. Stevenson and fifteen per cent to Jack E. Montgomery, Nashville, Tenn.

Application March 23, 1955, Serial No. 496,113

2 Claims. (Cl. 81-165) This invention relates to hand tools of various kinds including wrenches, and more particularly, to wrenches having handles with jaws at the end of the same, one of each pair of which jaws is movable or adjustable to permit the jaws to be spaced the desired distances for gripping nuts, bolts and the like of different sizes.

The invention is concerned particularly with adjustable wrenches of the above character having some means for locking or fastening the adjustable jaw of each in a fixed setting so that such wrench is capable of being readily and repeatedly used on a nut, bolt or other body of a particular size.

Wrenches with adjustable jaws are of great convenience but they easily get out of adjustment and where time is important as with a master mechanic working on an internal combustion engine in the aircraft industry, it is desirable to have means for locking the wrenches in a desired setting. Efforts to solve this problem have been unsuccessful due among other things to the modification of the wrench and the rendering of the same bulkier.

It is an object of the invention to overcome the difiiculties above enumerated and to provide a locking device for an adjustable wrench which does not materially add to the size of the wrench or modify the same and does not interfere with its use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wrench of the character indicated having a locking device and the wrench and locking device being capable of being used with one hand so that when in a restricted space it is not necessary for the operator to withdraw the hand and arm to make readjustment in the setting of the jaws.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive locking mechanism for an adjustable wrench which can be readily and easily applied to a conventional wrench having a handle with jaws at the end of the same, and capable of being operated and the jaws locked and adjusted with one hand as well as a locking mechanism which will operate indefinitely for effectively iocking the jaws of the wrench in the desired setting.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective of a wrench in which the jaws are located at the end of the handle and with the pivoted locking mechanism of the present invention applied thereto and in locking position;

Fig. 2, a view of the wrench head with the locking device in unlocked position;

Fig. 3, a section on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4, a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5, an enlarged detailed perspective of the locking element.

Briefly stated, the present invention is a locking device for an adjustable wrench having a straight handle with a fixed and a movable jaw at the end. The movable nited States Patent jaw is movable by rotating an adjusting member in the form of a worm engaging a series of rack-forming transverse notches on the inner edge of the adjustable jaw.

The locking device comprises an encircling clip pivoted so that its inner straight edge may be swung into engagement with the operating member, such clip having its outer end adapted to be received in a slot in the handle of the wrench to permit free movement of the operating member but being capable of being snapped back into snug encircling engagement with the handle for locking the parts in fixed relation.

With continued reference to the drawing, a wrench of conventional construction has a relatively straight handle 10 with a fixed jaw 11 at its end and an adjustable movable jaw 12 parallel thereto carried by the fixed jaw and having a series of notches 13 which form in effect a rack which is engaged by a knurled spirally ribbed operating member 14 rotatably mounted upon a pivot bolt 15 so that by rotation of the operating member the movable jaw can be adjusted relative to the fixed jaw, all of a conventional structure.

In order to lock the operating member against rotation so that the jaws of the wrench Will be maintained in fixed relation a clip 16 is provided having an extremity 17 disposed in proximity to the knurled operating member 14 and with a pivot bolt 18 disposed between a fiat portion 19 of the clip and a shoulder 20 formed at the end of a struck up portion 21. The clip will be maintained in position by the shoulder 24) due to the angularity of the end portion 1? and a right angular portion 22.

The remainder of the clip is curved to conform to the wrench surface on which it is applied and it is provided with a sharpened rear end 23 adapted to seat in a slot or groove 24 in the handle 10. Thus, when the locking clip is in the latter position the parts will be unlocked and by a slight pressure of the thumb on the clip it will snap out of such recess and into locking position.

It will be apparent that a locking device does not alter the wrench in any manner but permits it to be used in the same manner as prior to the addition of the locking clip. Also, only one hand is necessary in the use of the wrench and in the locking and unlocking of the same.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is illustrated in the drawing and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a wrench having a handle and a pair of jaws at the end of the same, one of which is movable and a knurled rotatable member positioned in a rectangular opening in the stationary jaw for adjusting the relative position of said jaws, a locking device comprising an encircling clip snugly fitted about said handle and having an end for engagement with said knurled operating member, a pivot pin located in said opening to one side of the knurled member and serving as a pivot for and retaining said clip in position, said clip being of a configuration to fit behind said pin and swing upon said pin as a pivot to bring the inner end of the clip into engagement with said knurled operating member, and a slot in said handle in a position to receive the outer end of said clip to cause the same to be maintained in a fixed position.

2. A wrench as set forth in claim 1, said locking device including a portion disposed at an inclination to the handle and another portion of a configuration to fit snugly about the surface of the wrench; the inner and Refeliences Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Brown Sept. 7, 1926 Schneider et a1 Mar. 4, 1930 4 Orchard Ian. 26, 1943 'M'oselter .c Oct 4, 1949 Chappel Aug. 11, 1953 Jackson Sept. 14, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS France Dec. 23, 1953 

